Mulberry Will Stop Showing At London Fashion Week
The brand is adopting a ‘see now, buy now’ model instead
One of England’s most well-known heritage brands is ceasing its participation in London Fashion Week in favour of a more ‘consumer-friendly’ approach. Mulberry have announced that starting from September, they will no longer host a runway show and instead, their Spring 2018 collection will be presented in an intimate space to buyers and select press in London and Paris.
In a statement, Thierry Andretta, CEO of Mulberry Group, revealed their motivation behind the move; “Mulberry has always been focused on offering a real and accessible lifestyle. The shift announced today enables us to continue to drive engagement and increase our relevance to our customers.” Having previously favoured consumer impact over press in the past by moving clothing release dates forward, rather than as per the six-month-ahead usual fashion week calendars, Mulberry are joining the likes of Topshop and Burberry with an instant shopping approach.
The move doesn’t come as a total surprise, the brand had previously missed two LFW appointments in a row when they were searching for a new creative director and have been vocal about wanting to adopt a direct to consumer strategy, only time will tell if this move helps shift their sales away from accessories and more into wholesale.